Horizon Europe is a seven-year

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

scientific research initiative to help develop a sustainable and livable society in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. It is the ninth of the

Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development The Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, also called Framework Programmes or abbreviated FP1 to FP9, are funding programmes created by the European Union/European Commission to support and foster research in the Europe ...

(FP9), and the successor of the Horizon 2020 programme (FP8). The

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

drafted and approved a plan for Horizon Europe to raise EU science spending levels by 50% over the years 2021–2027.

Objectives

Horizon Europe adopts five missions: #Adaptation to Climate Change: support at least 150 European regions and communities to become climate resilient by 2030 #Cancer: working with Europe's Beating Cancer Plan to improve the lives of more than 3 million people by 2030 through disease prevention, cure and solutions to live longer and better #Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030 #100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030 #A Soil Deal for Europe: 100 living labs and lighthouses to lead the transition towards healthy soils by 2030

Budget

In May 2018, the proposal for Horizon Europe (as the future successor for the Horizon 2020 programme, 2014–2020) called for €100 billion in research and innovation spending for years 2021–2027. Of that sum, €2.4 billion was earmarked for the Euratom nuclear research programme and €3.6 billion was put away for an umbrella investment fund, called InvestEU. After accounting for 2% annual inflation, in 2018 the funding for Horizon Europe amounted to €86.6 billion. The budget of €95.5 billion for Horizon Europe, which was launched in 2021, is up from the €77 billion budget for its predecessor, Horizon 2020. Compared to the previous framework programme Horizon 2020, some changes in terms of cost reporting have been implemented with the objective to simplify the grant management process. To pay for the €100 billion science spending, the Commission's plan called for cuts to

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

and cohesion funding by 5 per cent. Additionally, the plan seeks to tie funding to adherence to the

rule of law The essence of the rule of law is that all people and institutions within a Body politic, political body are subject to the same laws. This concept is sometimes stated simply as "no one is above the law" or "all are equal before the law". Acco ...

in member states, including judicial independence. Independent observers had predicted the final approved funding to be much lower after completion of the lengthy negotiations with the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

and

EU member states The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated population of over 449million as of 2024. The EU is often de ...

. Former EU commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation

Carlos Moedas Carlos Manuel Félix Moedas (born 10 August 1970) is a Portuguese civil engineer, economist and politician of the Social Democratic Party (Portugal), Social Democratic Party (PSD), who is the current Mayor of Lisbon. From 2014 until 2019, Moeda ...

, along with many advocacy groups, had pushed for a more expansive EU science budget. In order to build political support for the budget increase, he used American originated ideas of " moonshots" to focus research efforts and boost the public interest. Wealthier EU members have expressed opposition to the increase in funding, with former Dutch prime minister

Mark Rutte Mark Rutte (; born 14 February 1967) is a Dutch politician who has served as the 14th Secretary General of NATO, secretary general of NATO since October 2024. He previously served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands, prime minister of the Neth ...

saying in May 2018 the draft budget was "unacceptable".

EU members of Horizon Europe

Cooperation beyond the EU and associated members

Horizon Europe supports European partnerships in which the EU, national authorities and / or the private sector jointly commit to support the development and implementation of a programme of research and innovation activities. To be deemed a Horizon Europe Associated Member is to engage in "the closest form of cooperation in research and innovation for non-EU countries, by providing, as far as possible, the same rights and obligations to these countries' research and innovation entities as those accorded to entities of EU Member States." Associated Countries are "non-EU countries that pay into the Horizon Europe budget to be treated equally to the EU Member States for the purposes of the programme." Horizon Europe partnerships have raised questions about possible use in military technology development responsible for human rights abuses. In 2024, an in-depth study carried out by Statewatch and Informationsstelle Militarisierung (IMI) found that millions of euros in Horizon funding had been used to develop military drone technology used against civilians in Gaza, despite strict prohibitions on the use of Horizon funding for military application in the EU Treaties. Horizon Europe expanded its partnerships beyond the 27 member states of the EU, including the following: * In August 2022, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

launched formal dispute resolution proceedings over its access to the programme. In September 2023, the United Kingdom and European Union reached an agreement on the UK rejoining Horizon starting from 1 January 2024. * Participants from non-associated non-EU countries, can participate in Horizon Europe actions, but not always with funding. In addition, the following countries are interested in exploring the concept of association to Horizon Europe:

References

External links